Woodford Folk Festival is set to come alive with its famous six-day festival which will see the likes of Australian rock royalty Yothu Yindi and King Stingray perform on the Sunshine Coast from December to January 1.

Nestled on 500 acres of pristine regenerated farming lands – just off the Bruce Highway between Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast – Woodfordia will soon be a full rainbow of colour, with 110,000 freedom-loving patrons expected.

Woodford Folk Festival is an immersion into music, art and culture, with artists and presenters from more than 20 countries, offering a way for folks to recharge and connect during the Christmas holidays.

This year, the cultural-heavy program includes 450 of Australia’s best artists and presenters and is this year celebrating 37 years, and 30 years of the Woodfordia village.

Did you know?

• Woodford is so popular that for the duration of the event it temporarily becomes the 67th largest town in Australia.  
• Last year, the festival brought 10,000 out-of-state visitors to Queensland, generating 171,449 total direct visitor nights and injecting $26.08 million in direct and incremental spending in Queensland. 
• Woodfordia’s story began in July 1994, when the organisers of the then-called Maleny Folk Festival purchased an old dairy farm with the idea for transforming it into a cultural parkland to host what would be come to known as the Woodford Folk Festival.

A cultural melting pot of performances

Aussie queen of country Beccy Cole will grace our presence this year, as well as alt-rock storyteller Dan Sultan, and five-piece indie outfit Ball Park Music.  

Expect shows from the electric Jaguar Jonze and soul pop-singer Ngaiire, who this year will perform with polymath-pianist Paul Grabowski.  

Indie powerhouse Tia Gostelow and ‘Fresh New Prince’ Baker Boy will have everyone dancing, as artists Josh Pyke, Ash Grunwald, Husky, Alex the Astronaut and Tjaka prepare to perform across the 20+ stages.  

New Zealand’s world-renowned pop singer-songwriter Bic Runga is here, as well as South African acapella collective, The Joy.

Representing France, the multi-talented Ysé – who is hailed as a musical and visual UFO – is playing alongside AURUS.

Joining them is the ever-evolving Icelandic folk artist JFDR and the genre-blending Scottish trad-funk maestros, Elephant Sessions. 

Woodford also has several musical partner showcases including Ishkōdé Records, an Indigenous women-owned record label from Northern Turtle Island.

There will also be a Sunshine Coast special with Andrea Kirwin’s Peace Run Records (pictured), featuring 12 hand-picked acts.  

Woodfordia: What lies beyond the music

Beyond the music, Woodfordia is a wondrous world where patrons might find themselves at a rhythm and dance class, or perhaps attending a panel on restoring biodiversity to wild and urban spaces.

With an eclectic mix of workshops from acrobatics to cabaret and dance, there’s really something for everyone – even spoon-playing lessons!

Some of this year’s speakers include: “Alone” winner Gina Chick, “Mad Max’s” Quaden Bayles alongside activist Yarraka, diversity champions Like a Photon, Sea Shephard’s Jeff Hanson, Jinibara Traditional Custodians Uncle Noel Blair and Uncle Kenny Murphy, along with SBS’s Elder in Residence, Rhoda Roberts.  

For those looking to recharge, there will be a dedicated yoga and mindfulness programme with sunrise sessions on the hilltop each morning.

A festival for the entire family

Woodford has plenty on offer in the way of kids activities, with workshops designed for all ages, including a whole festival dedicated to the young ones called TinLids.

It features the ever-popular dirtgirlworld and Costa Georgiadis’s tour of Woodfordia, with Grammy-winning 23 Skidoo and the Secret Agency.

There’s also the permaculture electro-swing Formidable Vegetable, and a children’s comedy gala, a cool kids’ yoga, line dancing, hip hop, and spoken word events.  

The festival will culminate on New Year’s Eve, with a traditional three-minute silence before heralding in the new year with the harmonic force of Tibetan lineage Tenzin Choegyal.

Kids will especially love the nightly lantern parade. Make a lantern to light your way at the start of the Fire Event – after the performance it’s yours to keep. 

To see the full lineup and to purchase festival tickets including one day or multi-day passes with camping and glamping options, visit www.woodfordfolkfestival.com. 

Woodford celebrates 30th anniversary with tree ceremony

Woodfordia celebrates its 30th anniversary this year and kicked off celebrations earlier this year with a weekend of festivities and a tree-planting ceremony.

The milestone coincided with National Tree Day and a partnership with Planet Ark’s Seedbank Program, during which more than 1,500 trees were planted.

Founder of Woodfordia Bill Hauritz shared: “The land here at Woodfordia was initially a dairy farm, largely devoid of trees.

“We researched what was here prior to European settlement, discovering it was mostly rainforest. Over the years, with the help of volunteers, we have planted over 110,000 trees.”

Woodfordia volunteers are the backbone of the festival

Over the years, volunteers have played a crucial role in transforming and maintaining the Woodfordia site, and other restorative events and social enterprise ventures.

Their dedication and hard work has been instrumental in creating the thriving cultural and environmental haven celebrated today.

“The beautiful thing about planting trees is that it gives volunteers ownership of the site. They love the trees, coming back year after year to watch them grow. I’d say there have been as many as 5,000 to 7,000 tree planting volunteers,” Bill says.

The 2024/25 Woodford Folk Festival is supported by Arts Queensland and Tourism and Events Queensland. The event is held on Jinibara country in the Moreton Bay region. 

For more information about Woodfordia and the Woodford Folk Festival visit:
www.woodfordia.com.